Anniversary Present....

Maxie paid a visit to Vollis Simpson and brought home a whirligig. Sweetness!

Vollis Simpson in the NYT

I love destination riding. Pick a place -- a restaurant, a park, the beach, a meeting -- get on the bike and go. I like using my bike in a primary role of transportation, as opposed to recreation, although I must admit those two pursuits are interwoven.

One of my favorite destinations is Vollis Simpson's farm, down near Wilson. Vollis is known in art circles for his massive whirligigs, which grace museums across the country. Here's a Raleigh whirligig in action. Vollis' Lucama property is a whirligig wonderland. Here's the Street View in Google Maps.


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You'll see lots of bicycle components incorporated into his work. He told me he went to a recent police auction in Wilson and came home with a trailer load of old bikes that he uses for parts.







He also has a workshop full of smaller works, including these beauties:





I just saw a link on Facebook to a NYT slideshow on Vollis. It's definitely worth a look and read, as it includes a lot of Vollis' history.